Afternoon catchup: 5 Butler County stories you need to know today

The Chipotle Mexican Grill that opened in 2019 at 1479 Main St. was such a hit with Hamilton customers that another now is planned, this one on Hamilton’s East Side, at the Hardee’s location on Ohio 4.

The Chipotle Mexican Grill that opened in 2019 at 1479 Main St. was such a hit with Hamilton customers that another now is planned, this one on Hamilton’s East Side, at the Hardee’s location on Ohio 4.

Here’s a look at five big Butler County stories today to catch up on the news:


Saving Hamilton’s historic CSX station would cost $600,000. A vote will come soon on whether to do it

The orange area is the nearby city-owned property along Martin Luther King Boulevard where Hamilton's historic CSX station would be moved. The yellow star shows where the station now is located. PROVIDED

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It will cost $600,000 to move Hamilton’s historic CSX station along Martin Luther King Boulevard and set it up, City Manager Joshua Smith told council members Wednesday.

That $600,000 spending by the city would not include the later costs of rehabbing the station’s two buildings so they could be brought back to use for something, perhaps an Amtrak passenger station, Smith said. The city hopes to receive grants and donations from the public to lower city government’s costs.

Smith told council CSX has given Hamilton until March 31, 2022 to move the station or see it demolished.

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Hamilton to get second Chipotle location, replacing former Hardee’s

The Chipotle Mexican Grill that opened in 2019 at 1479 Main St. was such a hit with Hamilton customers that another now is planned, this one on Hamilton’s East Side, at the Hardee’s location on Ohio 4.

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The Chipotle Mexican Grill that opened in 2019 at 1479 Main St. was such a hit with Hamilton customers that another now is planned, this one on Hamilton’s East Side, at the Hardee’s location on Ohio 4.

Spokespeople for the restaurant were not available for comment about their hoped-for opening date.

“I think the Chipotle expansion is very significant,” said Hamilton Council Member Michael Ryan. “They are expanding in the city because the West Side location is doing so well. Them going to the Route 4 corridor just shows how well they’re doing here, and the community supports them.”

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Madison Schools superintendent to resign this summer

The leader of the 1,500-student Madison Schools has told the Journal-News she is resigning her superintendent's position effective July 31. Lisa Tuttle-Huff was hired in 2018 and in 2019 was given a five-year contract by the district's governing school board. (File Photo\Journal-News)

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The leader of Madison Schools has announced she is resigning.

Lisa Tuttle-Huff told the Journal-News today she has decided to leave the Madison superintendent’s position effective July 31.

“Ending this chapter at Madison is not an easy decision. I have poured my heart into serving this district for the past three years,” said Tuttle-Huff, who in 2019 was given a five-year contract by the district’s school board through 2024.

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Butler County elections director gets new kidney with help from friend group

One Hamilton woman's friends came together to help her get a life-saving gift. Diane Noonan needed a kidney – and got one – with the help of her best gal pals.

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One Hamilton woman’s friends came together to help her get a life-saving gift. Diane Noonan needed a kidney – and got one – with the help of her best gal pals.

The women have a history of giving: WCPO profiled them last year after they gave a big tip to a pizza delivery driver during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Their latest good deed saved the life of one of their own.

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Mother of slain Hamilton 16-year-old: Indictment this week ‘is starting a whole new journey in her case’

Sydney Garcia-Tovar, 16, had just graduated from Hamilton City School’s Miami School as part of an independent learning program when she was shot while behind the wheel on the night of July 23 at Tyler’s Creek Apartments.

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The mother of a 16-year-old Hamilton girl shot and killed in 2018 said an indictment in the cases that was handed down Wednesday is both a relief and the start of a new, stressful journey.

Stephanie Garcia-Tovar, mother of Sydney Garcia-Tovar, said she knew an indictment was coming soon, but hearing Townsend had been indicted made it real, she said.

“It wasn’t really a shock to me. When you actually see it, it’s more like, ‘Oh, crap’ it’s real and it’s on,” she said. “It is starting a whole new journey in her case. And it’s more raw, it’s like going back to the very beginning. The whole thing has taken a toll on me mentally, emotionally and physically.”

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AND, for an extra sixth story of the day ...

5 area high schools rank in Ohio’s top 100 in new report

The recently released, annual U.S. News and World Report ranking of top high schools in the state shows six of the top 100 best in Ohio are in Butler and southern Warren County. Lakota East High School is the third highest among the six schools. (File Photo\Journal-News)

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The annual U.S. News and World Report ranking of top public high schools in the state shows five of the top 100 in Ohio are in Butler and southern Warren counties.

The area’s highest-ranking high school is in Mason, which earned the 16th highest standing among Ohio’s 683 public high schools.

Several organizations rank K-12 schools, using a variety of formulas. U.S. News’ formula is based 90 percent on student testing — both state exams and the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests that some students choose to take.

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